The Vatican Information Service is a news service, founded in the Holy See Press Office, that provides information about the Magisterium and the pastoral activities of the Holy Father and the Roman Curia...[+]

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Friday, July 25, 2014

Vatican City, 25 July 2014 (VIS) –
Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin has sent a telegram on
behalf of Pope Francis to Archbishop Ghaleb Moussa Abdalla Bader of
Algiers, Algeria, in response to yesterday's tragic accident
involving an Air Algerie aircraft above Mali, which claimed many
lives. “His Holiness Pope Francis joins in prayer with the
suffering of those who have lost loved ones”, he writes. “He
wishes to convey his condolences and to assure them of his profound
sympathy, and prays that the Lord may receive the souls of the
departed and bring consolation and hope to all those affected by the
disaster”.

Vatican City, 25 July 2014 (VIS) –
Yesterday afternoon, at the Domus Sanctae Marthae, the Holy Father
Francis received in audience Ms. Meriam Yahia Ibrahim Ishag, the
Sudanese Christian woman imprisoned and condemned to death for
apostasy, and subsequently freed with the intervention of the
international community.

Meriam was accompanied by her husband
Daniel Wani and their two small children, Martin (aged one and a
half) and Maya, born in prison two months ago. The family was
accompanied by the Italian deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Lapo
Pistelli, who completed negotiations in Sudan yesterday and
accompanied Meriam and her family to Italy, where they are preparing
to move to the United States.

The meeting lasted for slightly less
than half an hour and took place in a serene and affectionate
atmosphere. The Pope thanked Meriam and her family for their
courageous witness of constancy in faith. Meriam gave thanks for the
great comfort and support she received from the prayer of the Pope
and many other believers and persons of good will. The Pope’s
secretary, Msgr. Yohannis Gaid, acted as interpreter. The Pope then
greeted the Italian staff accompanying Meriam and her family in their
stay in Italy.

With this gesture, the Pope wished to
demonstrate his closeness, attention and prayer for all those who
suffer for their faith and, in particular, for Christians who suffer
persecution or curtailment of their religious freedom.

Vatican City, 25 July 2014 (VIS) –
Archbishop Silvano Tomasi, the Holy See permanent observer at the
United Nations and other international organisations in Geneva, spoke
at the 21st Special Session of the Human Rights Council dedicated to
the question of human rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territory
including East Jerusalem, which took place on 23 July.

“As the number of people killed,
wounded, uprooted from their homes, continues to increase in the
conflict between Israel and some Palestinian groups, particularly in
the Gaza Strip, the voice of reason seems submerged by the blast of
arms. Violence will lead nowhere either now or in the future. The
perpetration of injustices and the violation of human rights,
especially the right to life and to live in peace and security, sow
fresh seeds of hatred and resentment. A culture of violence is being
consolidated, the fruits of which are destruction and death. In the
long run, there can be no winners in the current tragedy, only more
suffering. Most of the victims are civilians, who by international
humanitarian law, should be protected. The United Nations estimates
that approximately seventy percent of Palestinians killed have been
innocent civilians. This is just as intolerable as the rockets
missiles directed indiscriminately toward civilian targets in Israel.
Consciences are paralysed by a climate of protracted violence, which
seeks to impose solution through the annihilation of the other.
Demonising others, however, does not eliminate their rights. Instead,
the way to the future lies in recognising our common humanity”.

The archbishop mentioned that in his
pilgrimage to the Holy Land, Pope Francis demanded that the present
unacceptable situation of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict be brought
to an end. “The time has come for everyone to find the courage to
be generous and creative in the service of the common good, the
courage to forge a peace which rests on the acknowledgement by all of
the right of two States to exist and to live in peace and security
within internationally recognised borders”.

“The legitimate aspiration to
security, on one side, and to decent living conditions, on the other,
with access to the normal means of existence like medicines, water
and jobs, for example, reflects a fundamental human right, without
which peace is very difficult to preserve. The worsening situation in
Gaza is an incessant reminder of the necessity to arrive at a
cease-fire immediately and to start negotiating a lasting peace.
'Peace will bring countless benefits for the peoples of this region
and for the world as a whole', adds Pope Francis, 'and so it must
resolutely be pursued, even if each side has to make certain
sacrifices'. It becomes a responsibility of the international
community to engage in earnest in the pursuit of peace and to help
the parties in this horrible conflict reach some understanding in
order to stop the violence and look to the future with mutual trust”.

“The media should report in a fair
and unbiased manner the tragedy of all who are suffering because of
the conflict, in order to facilitate the development of an impartial
dialogue that acknowledges the rights of everyone, respects the just
concerns of the international community, and benefits from the
solidarity of the international community in supporting a serious
effort to attain peace. With an eye to the future, the vicious circle
of retribution and retaliation must cease. With violence, men and
women will continue to live as enemies and adversaries, but with
peace they can live as brothers and sisters”.

- appointed Bishop Florentino Galang
Lavarias of Iba, Philippines, as metropolitan archbishop of San
Fernando (area 2,180, population 3,561,000, Catholics 3,324,000,
priests 176, religious 155), Philippines. He succeeds Archbishop
Paciano Aniceto, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same
archdiocese upon reaching the age limit was accepted by the Holy
Father.

- appointed Rev. Severo C. Caermare as
bishop of Dipolog (area 7,205, population 977,000, Catholics 787,000,
priests 68, permanent deacons 1, religious 58), Philippines. The
bishop-elect was born in Poblacion, Philippines in 1969 and was
ordained a priest in 1996. He holds a master's degree in theology and
pastoral ministry from the St. John Vianney theological seminary of
Cagayan de Oro City, and has served in a number of pastoral roles,
including administrator of the parishes of “Our Mother of Perpetual
Help” and “San Isidore” in Zamboanga del Norte; formator,
rector, professor and liturgist at the Cor Jesu Seminary of Dipolog
City; and formator, professor, dean and rector of the St. Mary's
Theologate of Ozamis City. He is currently administrator of the “St.
Anthony of Padua” parish in Gulayon, Dipolog City, and rector of
the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary in Dipolog City. He
succeeds Bishop Jose R. Manguiran, whose resignation from the
pastoral care of the same diocese upon reaching the age limit was
accepted by the Holy Father.

- appointed Rev. Fr. Celestino Aos
Braco, O.F.M. Cap., as bishop of Copiapo (area 75,176, population
272,000, Catholics 207,000, priests 23, permanent deacons 35,
religious 76), Chile. The bishop-elect was born in Artaiz, Spain in
1945, gave his perpetual vows in 1967 ad was ordained a priest in
1968. He holds a licentiate in psychology from the University of
Barcelona, Spain, and has served in a number of pastoral roles in
Chile, including superior of the community of Los Angeles, Santa
Maria de Los Angeles; priest of the parish of “San Miguel” in
Vina del Mar; superior of the community of Recreo, and episcopal
vicar for consecrated life of the diocese of Valparaiso. He is
currently vicar of the parish of “San Francisco de Asis” in Los
Angeles. He has also served as provincial bursar for the order in
Chile, promoter of justice at the ecclesiastical tribunal of
Valparaiso, and judge at the tribunal of the archdiocese of
Concepcion.